Google Launches iOS Search App That Talks Back

Google has dived into Siri territory with an iOS voice search app that sometimes responds with spoken information. The voice command feature works primarily with conventional search, but can also launch videos, for example.

Voice commands for your phone aren’t exactly social, unless you count socializing with a robot. But SocialTimes readers might be interested to learn that Google has dived into Siri territory with an iOS voice search app that sometimes responds with spoken information.

The voice command feature works primarily with conventional search. For example, if you ask, if a user asks, “What does Yankee Stadium look like?” Google will show you hundreds of pictures instantly. But a user could ask to see a movie trailer and it would start playing “immediately” within the app itself, according to the announcement.

The user’s search query appears in type as s/he speaks. If the answer is “short and quick, like the status and departure time of your flight,” the app gives you the answer aloud, according to the blog post.

“We’ve had voice search itself as part of previous iterations of the Google Search App, so the real “big deal” here is that Google can now speak your answers back to you,” a Google spokesperson said.

Google is also banking on the functionality being smart and comprehensive, thanks to the knowledge graph the company has been building out, and fast.

Android users can access the Voice Actions app, which controls a more well rounded set of features.